BOOLEAN FUNCTION
| Collection | International Encyclopedia of Systems and Cybernetics |
|---|---|
| Year | 2004 |
| Vol. (num.) | 2(1) |
| ID | ◀ 317 ▶ |
| Object type | Methodology or model |
- “A logical switching rule which specifies the activity of a variable in response to all the possible combinations of activities in the input variables” (St. KAUFFMAN, 1993, p.65).
St. KAUFFMAN writes: “The Boolean function specifies for each possible combination of current activities of the input variables, the activity of the regulated variable at the next moment. For example, an element with two inputs might be active at the next moment if either one or the other or both inputs are active at the current moment” (1993, p.188).
There are two Boolean functions:
- The OR function, “which says that a variable will be active if any of its inputs variables is active” (Ibid).
- The Template:Ency entity function, which “declares that a variable will become active only if all its inputs are currently active” (Ibid.).
These very simple rules were enounced originally by George BOOLE and are of cardinal importance for any study of networks.